Most people, understandably, will do almost anything to avoid going to court for any number of reasons, including the financial cost, the loss of privacy, the inevitable calcification of antagonism between you and someone you married, the pain it causes children and other family members, and the fear of putting your life in the hands of a complete stranger, sitting on a bench at the front of a courtroom. (Not to mention all those moviesâ€”Kramer vs. Kramer, The War of the Roses, The Squid and the Whaleâ€”that act as cautionary tales, the horror stories bounced around the Internet, and those of people you know.)

Whether they are children of intact, separating, divorcing, or unmarried families, children require the financial support of their parents. In fact, parents are obligated to provide support for their children. That is simple enough, but when parents are separating, divorcing, or unmarried, determining how much support must be paid, to whom the support is to be paid, the expenses to which the support is applied, and what to do if support is not paid, becomes very difficult.